hello again, and welcome to inauguration day. it is, in fact, today. the constitution says a president's term ends at noon on january 20th, and the official proceedings have already begun. just moments ago, vice president biden took the oath at the naval observatory. supreme court justice sonia sotomayor swearing him in and just before noon chief justice john roberts will swear in president obama, a small private ceremony at the white house in advance of tomorrow's public event. about 800,000 expected right there at the national mall tomorrow far fewer than turned out four years ago for the first inaugural for president obama even everything just about set on the capitol where the president will deliver his inaugural address. our powerhouse roundtable standing by on what to expect in that speech and the second term, but first we're happy to welcome david plouffe to "this week." >> thanks for having me. >> lay out the vision the president expects to deliver to the nation tomorrow.

>> well, i think he is going to talk about how our founding principles and values can still guide us in today's modern and changing world. we do look at this in the state of the union as a package, so i think in the inaugural he'll allow his vision for a second term. the detailed blueprint and ideas will be in the state of the union so i think you have to view this as a package and say that our political system does not require us to resolve all of our differences or settle all of our disputes but it is absolutely imperative that our leaders try and seek common ground when it can and should exist. an important part of the speech. >> you've been with the president all through this journey and i was struck something his biographer david marannis noted. he said in the second term, it is less likely to contradict his will to do good. he's going to act with more assurance, and he's going to show who he really is in his second term. is that what you see? >> well, i think one of his great strengths is his authenticity, so he's always

been the same person, but i do think that it's clear, there's a huge consensus in the country about how we ought to approach the deficit and issues like immigration and gun safety and i don't think he's going to be very frustrated if washington is completely divorced from the reality in the country, so he's going to seek common ground. he's going to find every way he can to compromise, but he's going to be pretty clear and we're also going to bring the american people more into the debate than the first term. >> what's the big difference in the president obama who took the oath four years ago and the one that will take the oath tomorrow? >> there's atmospheric differences. we had an economy collapsing all around us and he was a first term president and still putting together his team and agenda and cabinet and still the economy is too weak but recovering and the question is right now building on that as opposed to simply trying to stem the bleeding. there's a big difference and i think the experience of the office, as you know, you know, that helps a lot and so i think he does have even more sure-footedness in his approach. >> it can become a bit of a

burden. historians write about the second term curse and i know you and your team spent a lot of time studying how to avoid that. what's the key? >> well, i think, listen, if you look at president clinton's second term, he made significant progress on balanced budgets and ronald reagan accomplished tax reforms. >> even if they're dealing with other problems. >> and we have been fortunate to be scandal-free and we want to continue that, but if you look, it's not like we're roaming around the west wing looking for things to do. right now in front of congress and the country you have the need to reduce the deficit and continue to grow the economy, energy and climate change, immigration, gun safety. things are stacked up. and so i think that that is going to provide the sort of focus and energy you need and i think his intention is to run through the tape all the way through. >> gun safety has jumped to the top of the president's agenda since newtown and this week the president promised that the weight of his office behind these proposals, but we're already seeing a lot of resistance from democrats and

i want to show some of the reaction this week. senator max baucus "before passing new laws we need a thoughtful debate that respects responsible law abiding gun owners in montana instead of one side fits all directives from washington. senator tim johnson, democrat of south dakota, "it makes common sense to not have one size fits all. senator mark begich, democrat of alaska, "i feel like it's going to be hard for they of these pieces of legislation to pass at this point." these are democrats. what is he going to bring to bear on that? >> it is a tough issue. i will say this, these are commonsense proposals that respect the rights of gun owners. let's start there. and i think if you look at high-capacity magazines, assault weapons, universal background checks, the progress we can make on mental health and school safety, all of these enjoy enormous support of the american people. democrats and republicans, so i think that putting together the legislative coalition is going to be hard obviously but we're very confident. i do think things have changed since newtown, you know, senator manchin and republicans and democrats are thinking anew about this issue. >> but senator harry reid, the

democratic leader in the senate, and those senators i just mentioned all signaling that the assault weapons ban is not likely to get through and will vote against it. will it be a success for the president if the assault weapons ban doesn't pass? >> i'm not going to predict what may or may not happen. the president put forward a package and has taken actions on his own on mental health and background checks but legislative proposals that will protect our kids and gun safety. we don't expect it all to pass in its current form but think there's elements that are critical. i think there will be a big spotlight shone on this. i think the american people are paying a lot of attention to this debate. >> and he will twist the arms of democrats? >> we will twist them, democrats and republicans, engage the american people and at the least have votes on this in the house and senate. i'm confident some of the measures you mentioned, universal background checks i think there are enough votes -- >> that could be the trade-off democratic senators vote against the assault weapons ban but vote for the magazine clips and for

the universal -- >> we think the assault weapons ban is important. as you know you were involved in passing this in '95 and senator feinstein is looking at how to improve it and deal with some of the loops that were in that legislation so think all these deserve votes and a lot can pass. >> you bought a little more time perhaps now on the big fiscal issues, taxes and spending and house republicans signaling this week that they would approve a three-month extension of the debt limit without any spending cuts and simply want to have a restriction on congressional pay. now i know the president has said that he didn't want to sign any more short-term exceptions. will he make an exception in this case? >> we have to see what they're proposing. we haven't seen what they're proposing, and they're going to have to pass it but, no, we don't think short term is the way to go about this. but on the other hand, this is a big departure for them, you know. they were saying the only way they would pay the bills they racked up is to basically hold -- yeah, i think they have on this principle and that's very important.

so, listen, the question is, on the big fundamental issue of can we come together on a fiscal package that reduces the deficit in the long term and then helps us grow the economy in the short term, i think the answer is yes. we're doing this in stages as opposed to one big package. >> the president likely to accept if they do indeed pass it and said he doesn't want to negotiate over the debt limit but if they pass it, there's a breathing space and will he start negotiations right now on the big budget issues after they pass this? >> we've been clear. we made public our offer to speaker boehner, over a trillion dollar in additional spending cuts, $400 billion in entitlement savings. this is really serious stuff on top of the over trillion dollars we signed into law. so the barrier to progress here isn't our position or the president. we moved more than halfway which is a fair definition of compromise. and we are going to require some more revenue. john boehner himself said, he thought there was $800 billion in revenue from closing loopholes. we dealt with the tax rate issue. now it's about loopholes, and i think the country would be well served by tax and entitlement reform because it will help our economy. >> that's what i was going to ask you because

both john boehner and republican leader in the senate mitch mcconnell said the revenue debate is over. no more taxes. are you saying that the president will only sign a budget deal if it includes new revenues? >> yes, it's got to be balanced. and, by the way, they weren't saying that a matter of weeks ago. speaker boehner said 800 billion from closing loopholes. what's changed in the last four weeks? nothing. so there's plenty of loopholes whether it's people shipping jobs overseas who get preferential tax treatment. the subsidies to the energy companies. loopholes for, you know, billionaires, there are things we can close here to make -- >> you're saying no deal if they don't -- >> we need balance, george. we need spending cuts and revenue. entitlement reform. have to have that. >> let me talk about immigration. the president has identified immigration reform as another top priority of his second term. you just mentioned it again. the republican senator marco rubio has been taking the lead and jay carney, the white house press secretary had positive words about his proposals this week. but marco rubio said this week

on bill owe rile we'll show the president hasn't reached out. take a look. >> they never talked to us about it and the truth is the way our republic is designed the president can design whether to sign or not. >> but you're a leader. shouldn't the president be conferring with leaders in the house and senate? >> well, we'll be more than happy to talk to him and explain my principles. >> he hasn't called. >> no. >> why not? >> there's going to be a debate and process over immigration reform and i think during that process, i think there will be discussions we, the president's administration have with members of congress and congress among themselves, but what's clear is the stars are aligned for immigration reform. by the way, it needs to be real immigration reform. >> but aren't you going to team up with marco rubio to get it done? >> there will be a process and do think there's broad republican support around the country. not as much in congress, but maybe we're beginning to see a change there. the stars are aligned for progress here on, you know, building on the border security progress we've made. holding businesses accountable in terms of hiring legal immigrants, in terms of a pathway to earn citizenship, so i do think the moment is here

right now to finally get this done. high-skilled workers for our businesses. there's a lot that we -- >> those are all things he's talking about, as well. wouldn't it be more powerful if the president and key republicans had a united front? >> well, george, this process will begin shortly. another effort here to finally get immigration reform and at that point i think you'll see us working with democrats and republicans, people outside of washington, there's a huge consensus in the business community, in the faith community for immigration reform. so, yeah, our hope is that we can do this. maybe this is an issue that doesn't have to be as hard as it should -- as it needs to be. should be something where there seems to be a consensus in the country. i think there is a political necessity for the republican party to do this and we believe it's the right thing to do for our country and our economy. >> i know you want to put the weight of the president's campaign behind all these issues, new organization, organizing for action, a new political action committee. unlimited donations from corporations, but the president will disclose all donors. >> yes, we will voluntarily disclose all donors and we're very excited.

the people who made the president's campaign in both '08 and '12 are great grassroots volunteers, and we're pretty clear after they want to be out there organizing, driving message, holding people accountable on issues like immigration, you know, the deficit, jobs. gun safety, a lot of passion out there and so i think one of the lessons from the first term that we want to do better is, yes, there has to be an inside game. there also has to be an outside game. it's not either/or, and you put them together, and, as you know, times that you really get fundamental progress and change in washington is where the american people focus and pushing and want to make sure we're in communication with them. >> i know you're advising organization for action, but this is your last week at the white house. what will you miss most? >> it's just a privilege as you know to work in that building and you get a ph.d. on every issue facing the country and an awesome honor to spend time there and for me it's been a remarkable journey. six years ago today we were the longest of long shots running for president. now tomorrow he'll be giving a second inaugural address. and so i'll miss -- this is

a great moment where all of us who wanted to work in a campaign with grassroots energy for a candidate like this with amazing colleagues, so it's been a remarkable journey. but what i'll miss most is just, you know, the president each and every day, you know, the integrity he brings to decision-making, the focus he has, the vision he has, and that's why this second term, i'll tell you, you know, in my remaining days, he made it clear there's going to be no let-up. he's going to push as hard as he can in the second term to continue to move the country forward building this progress and as i said the issues are stacked up. and now we just have to get them done. >> so you'll work hard but savor that moment tomorrow. >> absolutely. really soak it in. >> david plouffe, thank you very much. take care. our powerhouse roundtable is coming up. their take on the second term. eva longoria joins us live. this week at the inauguration, we'll be right back. ♪

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are the president's kids more important than yours? then why is he skeptical about putting armed security in our schools when his kids are protected by armed guards at their schools? >> the talk about the president's children or any public officer's children i think is reprehensible. >> i started getting a lot of letters from kids. >> i've been watching the

children as human shields show that is now going on at the white house. it's stunning. >> the gun debate already hot and heavy this week before the second term even begins. let's talk about that right now on our roundtable joined by george will, as always, cokie roberts, rick santorum, former republican presidential candidate and senator, now the head of patriot voices, former michigan governor jennifer granholm, thanks for joining us and matthew dowd and, george, we do have so much to get to today, but let's begin with the debate joined. it wasn't even on the agenda a couple of months ago, the president saying he's going to do everything he can to pass gun proposals but david plouffe signaling they're pretty realistic about what they can achieve. >> well, are they? the endurable myth about the obama presidency to which mr. obama subscribes is that he's tremendously persuasive. i don't think his advocacy of obama care and the health care bill supports that. >> it did pass.

>> it did pass with chicanery and reconciliation and lots of other things, but he did not move the country which is what he's trying to do with the nra. obama's approval rating 52%, the nra's approval rating 54%. >> republicans in congress is 17%. >> since gun control came back to the top of the agenda, the nra has acquired 250,000 new members, so we're going to find out. you saw by putting up the statements by some of the democratic senators that there's a resistance in the democratic caucus because they have six seats up next time. >> all of those senators, i showed. >> in states where mr. obama got less than 42% of the votes, the republicans need to control the senate six seats. >> so how hard does he push this, cokie? >> i think he pushes parts of it. the assault weapons ban is obviously a huge problem and that's what most people are pushing back against. although it is interesting with the increased number of women in congress that it might have a better shot than 1994, 29% of

republican men voted for the assault weapons ban and almost 70% of republican women. so you could see a difference because of that. but i think that background checks, waiting period, you know, the biggest gun violence is suicide. and to put in a waiting period could help with suicide. >> rick, how do you -- >> so i think you could start to see some movement on those aspects. >> how do you think republicans should play this? >> i think we should stick to our guns and, you know, george reminded me of something i said to him back in '94 when i ran for the senate in pennsylvania. he said, how am i going to win? i said, guns. i don't think -- i think it's an even more important issue for people today given the increasing level of violence in our society. people feel unsafe and having a gun and gun ownership is part of how people can feel safer, and when you look at in my opinion the disingenuousness of the administration, they met with the nra, as you know, joe biden

did, and the nra brought up the fact that prosecutions for gun crimes and prosecutions for people who fill out -- lie on their registration forms or gun forms are down under this administration, and the vice president responded, we don't have time to devote to seeing whether people fill out a form right. well, wait a minute. they're asking for more forms and they're saying they don't have the time to fill out -- to check -- are they serious about this or is this just about politics? >> well, first of all, let's be clear about why there has been fewer enforcements, and the head of the atf feels there's been a failure to confirm because the nra has objected and they have objected to reasonable pragmatic solutions, and that's what this is all about. this is not about taking people's guns away. it's about a narrow set of proposals that will enable us to help enforce the existing gun laws, the ban on assault weapons

and a ban on high-capacity magazines and even a ban on armor-piercing bullets are overwhelmingly supported by the citizenry. 50% of men, 57% -- 59% of women support an assault ban, assault weapons ban. same number for a ban on high-capacity magazines. i think the president views i think the president views this -- he is really -- he sees himself as the protector in chief and that's true on foreign policy and it's true on domestic -- >> he clearly seems to have been personally affected, matthew dowd, by the newtown tragedy, but how much -- if you were advising him, how much should he invest in this at the beginning of what is a packed second term? >> he definitely was affected by it. every american was affected by what happened in that awful situation. i mean the president could have done a lot of this in the last four years which he chose not to do. he could have done a bunch on executive orders and decisions he chose not to because he understood the political problem with this. to me this whole issue -- i live in austin, texas, and texas is a

place where people love their guns. i have five -- owned five guns. most people know something has to be done. most people know there has to be something done. how far does it is extended is a question of debate. something will get passed -- but i'm just -- >> before that, my fear is the real thing that won't get done is what the real issue is which is mental health. >> it's going to get -- >> it's huge. the way we treat mental in this country is in jail. that's it. we have no mental health treatment, and it is shocking, and it was, you know, liberal good intentions of deinstitutionalization sending people out into a community where there was nobody to take care of them. >> he said he's called for investing up to $100 million in this project aware and have teachers, school officials identify people who might have mental health problems and be prepared to turn them in. >> the last bill jack kennedy signed before flying to dallas where he was murdered was the

deinstitutionalization bill which closed a lot of asylums and sent people into the society where we did not provide the community health centers. second point, the vast majority of people involved in gun violence are clinically sane. third point, defining an assault weapon is hard enough. try to define mental health and try to do so with respecting the privacy concerns with doctor and patient relationships. rick referred to the feeling of increased violence in the country. it's not true, though. you may feel that way, but there's been a stunning drop in gun violence and murders, cut it half really in 20 years. >> except for the suicides, and we had more troops commit suicide in afghanistan last year than were killed in combat. that happened with guns. >> and the other thing is there's been an increase in these mass shootings, all of which are related to a combination of a gun, a high-velocity gun with large magazines and somebody that was mentally ill,

and part of the system, which i give the president credit for, is there was an ability of people in hospitals and people in institutions to ask somebody that came in -- >> right. >> ill health, mentally ill and ask if there were guns in their home and even ask that question. >> the nra kept that out of the -- >> the shooter in aurora, colorado, had passed two background checks, the shooter at virginia tech had passed two background checks. so the idea that there is a panacea out there -- >> there is not a panacea, but what about the president's argument if it can stop even one of these, it's worth a try. >> well, how many people are you going to deny guns who you are going -- who are going to protect themselves? there are more people who protect themselves and stop violence having -- having occurred -- having happened to them with the

ownership of a gun than it is people who commit crimes with a gun. so this idea that the problem is -- >> what about the magazines? why have a magazine that can riddle a 6-year-old into shreds? >> here's what i would say about that. 50 years ago you could go on a catalog and buy a gun. there were no restrictions on gun ownership. no restrictions on magazines. there were no restrictions on anything. and we had a lot less violence in society than we do today. the idea of pointing to the gun instead of pointing to society and not one thing the president did dealt with hollywood and gun violence and video games and -- all of the vilification of violence. >> what about armor-piercing bullets, why do we need that? >> why do we need to protect hollywood putting -- >> i'm not talking about that. >> but i am. >> i'm asking specifically. >> one at a time. >> you are too. [ all talking at once ] >> why do you need armor-piercing bullets? >> because we're talking about a particular type of bullet that is and can be available -- >> why do you need an armor piercing bullet? >> but criminals could and having -- >> and police officers certainly do. >> and having the ability to defend yourself is a right in

this country. >> that has to be the last word. lots more roundtable ahead. can president obama avoid the second term curse? what to make of the tactical treat on the debt limit and everyone will weigh in on the confession of lance armstrong and our favorite "desperate housewife," eva longoria joins us live only on "this week." but i've never seen before. this ge jet engine can understand 5,000 data samples per second. which is good for business. because planes use less fuel, spend less time on the ground and more time in the air. suddenly, faraway places don't seem so...far away. ♪

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we knew that we must find practical controls over blind economic forces and blindly selfish men. >> we have been warned by the power of modern weapons that peace may be the only climate possible for human life itself. >> fdr in 1937, ike in 1957. we're told that president obama studying both those inaugural addresses as he prepares for his own. let's talk about that on our

roundtable and bring you in, george will. one of the reasons he might be reaching back into history is that if you look at recent second inaugurals, not all that memorable, and recent second terms, not great records. >> i would guess he would reach back not to '57 but to '37 to fdr's very combative speech. in march 4th when we inaugurated back then 1801, thomas jefferson gave a speech saying "we are all republicans, we are all federalists, we're all of one common principle." well, i don't expect to hear that from this president because he is combative, and he does feel the will of the world. the 1800 election may have been the most important election in world history because it was the first time power had been peacefully transferred after an election and this great healing moment. i think this president feels the way roosevelt did in '37. >> well, of course, nobody believes thomas jefferson and john adams snuck out of town ahead of time because he didn't want to be there to witness his defeater making that speech.

so it wasn't exactly a healthy time but second terms have been rough. if i were obama, i wouldn't be paying attention to either of those speeching. i would be paying attention to the man on whose holiday this inauguration falls. >> martin luther king. >> martin luther king, because that is really what can make obama stand out. it was what made people excited about him in the first inauguration was this moment in history. it's yet another moment in history, and it comes on the 50th anniversary of the march on washington, the 150th anniversary of the emancipation proclamation. >> it's interesting, he's going to be taking the oath on lincoln's bible and martin luther king's bible. >> if i were him i would pay attention to one of the best inaugural speeches at the time which is i think not exactly the same but most similar was 1865. >> lincoln's second term. >> lincoln's speech used the word "i" one time. >> setting the bar very high. >> but i think we are at probably in this country at one

of the most divisive polarized times we've had since the civil war and in that speech lincoln talked about we both pray to the same god, malice towards none, charity for all, and all of that, and i think this president, which i don't think will do, should come with a sense of humbleness, a sense of humility and a sense that basically the biggest problem he has in this country is the divisions that exist in this country that have only been made worse in the course of his presidency. age divisions, sex divisions, church divisions, all the divisions that exist in this country, he has to figure out a way to bring people together and solve some of the problems. >> which is why i think ping is a good example. he takes that and talks about inclusion. >> all well and good as long as you're talking about the broad values -- >> that's what an inaugural is. the state of the union is the policy. >> what do you expect to hear? >> oh, i think you'll hear more of the same. i think you're right, more '37 than 1860. this is a president who very clearly since the election has decided he won and he's going to

drive it, and he's not interested in compromise. i don't know. i don't think this speech frankly matters that much. i think what matters is what the president pushes, and from what i hear, it's going to be guns, it's going to be climate change, both of which are nonstarters up on capitol hill, and he knows it instead of -- you want to see if the president really wants to make a difference, he'll lead with immigration, because there's not a single republican up on capitol hill who believes he wants to get it done. they all believe he wants that -- he will put -- he will put -- measure that the republicans can't accept and blame republicans and then continue to drive a wedge between republicans and hispanics, and if he changes that, if he changes that and says, no, i'm willing to actually work together and get something we can all agree on, he will change the tone on capitol hill. don't expect it, but that's what -- >> if republicans think that he has said that he doesn't want to work on immigration, they have not been listening, the division in the country is right in capitol hill. the division in this country was brought together by the president who has formed these

unbelievable coalitions of people, which is exactly what is going to carry forward with this organizing for action, and i think his inaugural address is going to speak to that unity. he's not going to be speaking to a congress that has an approval rating less than cockroaches and lice cording to a poll last week, but he is going to speak to the humanity out there who want to see action happen, and he is going to remind people, i think, that we are all in this together, and that is his strength, it's not from inside washington but outside. >> the problem the president has had -- i hope he does that -- he ran a campaign in 2008 and many of us had this great hope and people -- he was going to bring the country together. he's going to change washington. he's going to do all that and in the course of his presidency, we all want him to succeed because if he succeeds, the country succeeds. it's only gotten worse and he has said the words -- >> but why -- >> some of that. >> because of the no, no, no -- >> but the only person responsible, he is responsible

to himself. i don't think -- he hasn't held dinners with congressmen. he's avoiding meetings with congressmen. he hasn't used the social power of the president -- >> he claims that they've avoided meetings with him, as well, he said, in his last press conference, but the truth is, we are dealing with a systemic problem in congress, as you well know, which is, you know, we used -- and we had 105 districts a few years ago. this election we had 35. so people are absolutely dug in to their positions, and it is very, very difficult to get anybody -- >> given that reality, george will, what could the president do if he wanted to to kind of bridge those divides? >> well, it's extremely easy. these are splittable differences on whether or not -- how and whether we're going to pay for the welfare state. you've heard me before, george, i'll say it again, i disagree with all four of you. i don't think this division is what characterizes this town. it's a vast, deep consensus we're going to have a large generous welfare state and not pay for it.

everyone is agreed on that, and until the arithmetic forces us to change on that, we're going to -- these other issues are small potatoes. >> and, you know, rick santorum, house republicans certainly seem to feel some of the pressure on those issues this week. they announced at the end of the week that they're not going to hold up this debt limit and seek a three-month extension on the debt limit to give some breathing space for negotiations. you know, you heard david plouffe right there say that is a cave by house republicans. >> well, listen to that language. i mean, republicans extend an olive branch, ah, they're caving. ah, we got them. that's not how a leader acts. the governor didn't get things done in michigan because every time she won she rubbed it in their nose, and i always said there's one thing worse than a sore loser and that's a sore winner and the president is a sore winner and republicans understand that and this president could get immigration done. he could get something done on

deficits and entitlements, but he's got to move his people to do that instead of forcing republicans always to come his way and that is the problem. >> i just -- i mean, the reality from the lens on the left, and truly if you ask people out there, i think they would agree is that when the house republican caucus sent all those -- that made it impassable for john boehner to move, who were sent there for the purpose of not compromising, for the purpose of saying no, that made compromise virtually impossible. the president has indicated he's willing to compromise. he has angered his base, but on the right that caucus is dragging the country down. >> i'm going to agree with something that george said, which i think the fundamental problem is nobody is willing to do anything about the fiscal mess. nobody. republicans aren't willing to do it and democrats aren't willing to do it. they're both interested in blowing up the balance sheet. republicans want to blow up the balance sheet because they're n unwilling to raise taxes. they want to do it to keep tacks low.

democrats are willing to blow up the balance sheet because they want to continue government spending and increase the size of the government. >> we are -- [ all talking at the same time ] >> you've seen a trillion and a half dollars in spending cuts and saw $600 billion in new revenue. they have been taking -- >> george, if you take a look at what really was done is they dealt with the easiest 3% or 4% of the problem. the first mile of a marathon and want to celebrate at the half marathon mark when they've 25 miles more to run. >> that's why what the republicans did was smart. first of all, they took the debt limit and default and shutting down the government off the plate. but they also said, we want because this is the one place where they are getting through to people. we want the senate to pass a budget, and they are correct -- >> which they haven't in four years. >> but the senate hasn't done it because the democrats don't want to say where they would cut and that is a smart political move to make. >> instead of fighting the president, they're fighting

democrats in the senate. >> that's right, and the two big occasions coming up are march 1st, which is when the sequester kicks in, and there are a large number of republicans who have concluded that there will be no spending cuts other than by the sequester, so the question -- >> which is across-the-board cuts across domestic and -- >> half from defense, which is 17% of the budget, so the question is, do republicans hate defense cuts less than they would like to see the spending cuts on the domestic side? my -- after that comes march 27th, which is when the current continuing resolution on -- that funds the government expires, so we're going to have real debates about real splittable differences. >> the other thing, george, that's going to happen, and i think that this is going to begin the process of it, is that every day that goes past the inauguration is a loss of power day for the president. and you have -- you basically now have a party, the democratic party will function with him but it's been a cult of personal. fundamentally a cult of personality around the president. they'll have to figure out where

they go from here and what's going to happen. the republicans are a cult of no personality and no people and they're going to have to figure out so each day goes forward i think we're going to have an increasing inability for somebody to stand up and say i represent what the republicans are. right now the republicans, the governor is right, they're lower than cockroaches. i think cockroaches are happy about the republicans and democrats, as soon as this personality and days fade and cult of personality begin s to go, they'll be in search of somebody. >> is this a problem with a second term because of term limits? you know, term limits mean that you can't ever run again. and so the minute you have, you know, gone through this nice exercise, then they stop paying attention to you because they're worrying about who they're going to run with. >> i think the second term is the curse of the second term that everybody refers to -- has a potential of being damaging for the president, but if the republicans continue to take very unpopular positions on issues that the public really wants to see movement on, then in the second half of his second

term, if he's able to pick up more members of the house and of the senate, he could finish with a -- >> that's going to be very difficult in 2014 but let me pick up on that because i think you're right, the clock is ticking. speed matters on all of these issues, and let me ask you, governor granholm, immigration, marco rubio clearly coming forward with proposals that are certainly similar to what the president has called for, yet no phone calls from the president, no move to actually, you know, create some kind of united front that will get something done quickly. >> but i think that is going to happen. i mean, he's just getting inaugurated tomorrow. immigration is going to be first up. that's his top priority. obviously he's got to reach out to the senate. the real question is will there be a consensus on a path to citizenship? that's the toughest issue for i think republicans and the question of the time frame for that. so if there is a consensus on that, i think -- i mean, i think immigration is going to be the biggest area of momentum -- >> when you look back, governor,

there are 20 issues on immigration, and you just nailed the hardest one. >> right. >> and you're saying, okay -- you're only serious about doing something on immigration if you concede on the one that is the most difficult to occur. >> that won't be part of it? >> i think it is the toughest issue for republicans. >> you mean dealing with the 11 million -- >> is citizenship. >> okay, fine. >> that's the toughest issue and this is what -- this is how the white house works. you give us the touchdown and then, you know, we'll -- then maybe we'll worry -- if you concede failure, if you concede capitulations, we'll give you everything you want then we are okay. that's not the way you negotiate. >> but here's where the republicans are already setting themselves up for defeat. the president offers "x," the rubio example is "x" minus "y". all anyone will notice is the "y," that is, the failure to reach citizenship. if the republicans want to do it they have to get to the left, if you will.

they have to be more generous on immigration than the president. >> but republicans have -- >> but the problem comes -- >> a huge political problem for the republicans because if -- the republicans will become and remain a minority party unless they deal with the latino and hispanic issue in this country and they will remain -- it's the fastest growing group in the country, it's growing in every sector of the country and that's a problem. to me if you look back at president bush's second inaugural in 2005 and what he did in the aftermath, it was the biggest mistake he made, which many of us talked to him about, was choosing to do social security instead of immigration. if he had done immigration, the end of that presidency would have been different. >> he actually said to me, because he invited me to ride with him to go greet the pope at andrews, it was quite a moment and i cleared my calendar so i could do it and we -- he said to me, i tried and tried and tried to get my party to do immigration, and the reason i couldn't do it was because of the drawing of district lines making it just too hard for

republicans -- >> are republicans ready now, rick santorum? >> i think the republicans are ready to do something on immigration. you saw marco rubio explain, which is pretty far down the road. looks a lot like what president bush put forward four years ago, yes, they're willing to do it but they're not willing to give the president everything he wants because i think they believe the rule still matters in this country and that we have to respect those who did it the right way, who waited in line and did -- and made sacrifices and that they shouldn't be treated the same as people who broke the law and came here and get the same -- >> i want to get another subject in. we saw this remarkable -- i guess we call it a confession from lance armstrong this week. 2 1/2 hours with oprah winfrey. here's a part of it. >> did it feel wrong? >> no. scary. >> did you feel bad about it? >> no. even scarier. >> did you feel in any way that

you were cheating? >> no. the scariest. >> not a lot of contrition there. >> the rewards of athletic excellence in this country are astonishingly high and, therefore, the temptation to cheat is astonishingly high, and we see it throughout -- we've seen it in track and field probably more than any other. baseball has had its problem. you can't tell me the people in football don't look that way without human growth and hormones and steroids. it's a pandemic problem, and the country is wide awake to it now. every time this happens someone says, ah, the loss of innocence. who is innocent? i mean -- >> except he was such a bully about it. i mean all those years of saying, no, no, no and suing people and all of that. no, it's just -- it's so outrageous. it's sort of another whole level of outrageousness. >> you know, i know lance. i've been to lance's house. i've been out to dinner with lance. i live in austin, you know, the

whole sort of cult of lance and all that. to me there's a couple of fundamental things about this. it's first is this is what happens i think as a society when we elevate celebrity, fame, fortune above many other values in society, that integrity and telling the truth, and so we think we can consider heroes not the person, the average person out there paying their bills on time, telling the truth, raising a family, loving their partner, all of that stuff, the cult of personality takes over. the other thing about this, there's been so many people harmed in this, i feel really bad for his kids, especially his boy. >> it's the one place he broke up talking about his boy. >> i feel very bad, but this is what happens, bullies and all of this happens, we see it before. these are people that operate because they're very scared. very insecure and operate from a place of fear. much of what happens on capitol hill, when people operate from that place, they're unwilling to confront the truth. >> fear would also -- when people have this kind of power, rick santorum, this other piece of so many politicians think they can outrun the truth and they never can. >> right. >> but he did.

>> for awhile. >> well, but he did. >> ultimately -- >> he's worth hundreds of millions of dollars. i mean, he's got a life that, you know, people would -- you know that -- what's the lesson? the lesson is you make a confession on oprah and you're shamed and but -- look at the life he's lived. i mean he made -- he did it. can he -- that's the problem. what's the lesson that's really being learned? >> i agree. >> i don't think he feels -- i mean i think -- i think if you go in there and maybe over time and maybe over the next year and sometimes when people have to speak that they started with a first step and the first step doesn't feel awkward and then maybe a year from now the steps feel awkward, i don't think he feels good about himself. i don't think he feels good about his life actually and if he reflects on it and what he's done to his children and what's happened to that. >> his cancer foundation did a great deal of good and now it's going to be -- >> he treats everybody badly.

he treats waiters badly. he treats waitresses badly. he treats wives of tour de france winners badly. that's not a life i would want be to living. >> can he be redeemed? >> i don't want to. i don't know about others. it's cheating on big and small levels. it's such a terrible message for young people, for anybody in the sports world, for anybody in the political world, for anybody anywhere. it's a terrible message. and i'm not ready to forgive him. >> look, i'm not -- obviously i'm not condoning anything. i'm just saying from his perspective, what i saw in that interview, i don't think he would have changed a thing, number one. number two, the organizations who run these, whether major league baseball or the olympics, they turn a blind eye to this and have for a long time, you know, and they don't -- they -- >> money. >> it's all about money, these organizations and that is as much to blame as lance armstrong. >> and that is the last word today. thank you all for a terrific roundtable. george will will stick around to answer your facebook questions for our web extra. >> from the front page of t"the

wall street journal", eva longoria is here live. higher office, is that in her future? >> who do you want to see? >> katy perry. >> katy perry. >> usher. >> barack obama and mrs. obama. >> i'd like to meet the president because they have a big house. >> president obama. >> his favorite thing is pizza but we act like -- ♪ >> announcer: this is an abc news special report. the second inauguration of president barack obama. now reporting from the news seem in washington, d.c., diane sawyer and george stephanopoulos. >> and a good sunday morning to you. there it is, the sky is blue and this is a historic special report. i'm diane sawyer with george

stephanopoulos. on this inauguration weekend we want to take you with us inside the white house where at this moment, the president is getting ready to speak the 35 words that arc all the way through the history of this country, back to george washington, the oath of office that will begin his second term. >> it is happening on a sunday for only the seventh time in our history because the constitution says the presidential oath must be taken by noon on the 20th of january. all the big public ceremonies, the capitol there, the preparations beginning on the west front. 800,000 will spread across the national mall in washington and hear the president deliver his second inaugural address from that podium right there. for vice president biden, the second term already has begun. he was sworn in earlier this morning. supreme court justice sonia sotomayor doing the honors and the president and vice president went to arlington cemetery to lay a wreath at the tomb of the unknowns. >> we expect the president's family to gather with him in the

blue room in just minutes. by the way, he will be sworn in by chief justice john roberts and he will be sworn in on the bible that belongs to the first lady's family, it is frasier robinson iii. you'll remember her father worked in a boiler rooming all his life to give his children a chance to go to college and that was the bible he gave to her grandmother and that will be the swearing in bible. >> i'm here with cokie roberts who covered so many inaugurations, i think your first was at the age of 5. >> that's true, in 1949. >> today, the personal. tomorrow the president will put his hand on two bibles, one belonging to martin luther king jr., one to abraham lincoln. >> symbolic moment. martin luther king day tomorrow and 150th anniversary this january of the emancipation proclamation that president lincoln, of course, promulgated and to have that for our first african-american president is very, very special. but it's a special day always. it is such an exciting day.

the whole city, you can feel it throughout the city because after the nastiness of the campaign and the misery of congress bickering, everybody comes together for democracy's great day. >> and we even heard marching bands were practicing in the hotel lobbies cheering everyone along. i'm going to turn to matthew dowd, our consultant, who has worked on some 60 campaigns himself. and both sides of the political aisle. i've been reading the memoirs, matt, and a number of them have said these private ceremonies are often the most poignant. most about the meaning and less about the pageantry. >> well, in the last time we had a private moment like this in a second inauguration was ronald reagan, 1985 and these moments i think are one of the few types in american history we get a pomp and circumstance moment steeped with tradition, obviously a nation of laws but this is our moment most like a coronation and what happens in countries with monarchies set up where a nation of laws but a

time for everybody to pause. i went walking by the white house and up the mall. you get the feel of that, even black, white, republicans, democrats, all stop today and tomorrow and say this is what our country is about. >> everybody wants to believe, everybody coming together at this moment and some ways the second inauguration, sometimes they feel a little bit like a letdown but in some ways they're even more important, the president having to rededicate the entire country to the mission of his second term. >> we want to take a look at the white house. it is 52 degrees on this day in washington. a beautiful sight it is and looking over the south lawn towards the washington monument, the president will soon take the oath of office just seconds away from his second term about to begin.

>> chief justice john roberts joined by the president and his family. >> please raise your right hand and repeat after me. i, barack hussein obama, do solemnly swear. >> i barack hussein obama do solemnly swear. >> that i will faithfully execute. >> that i will faithfully execute. >> the office of president of united states. >> the office of president of the united states. >> and will to the best of my ability -- >> and will to the best of my ability -- >> preserve, protect and defend. >> preserve, protect and defend. >> the constitution of the united states. >> the constitution of the united states. >> so help you god. >> so help me god. >> congratulations, mr. president. >> thank you, mr. chief justice, thank you very much. thank you, sir. [ applause ] >> hey. >> very happy.

>> there he is, the 44th president and beginning anew again. >> his second term has begun. he will go back to the family, first, we said all the big public ceremonies tomorrow and we had to note there, the chief justice holding on to that oath, he had the printed copy in front of him. of course, cokie roberts four years ago, remember, this is the third time the president has taken the oath of office because he had to retake it because the chief justice remembered it wrong. >> he flubbed it and it was an embarrassing moment for both of them so they decided in the abundance of caution for the chief justice to go back to the white house and to administer it a second time so now a third time, tomorrow a fourth time. you'd thing it was franklin roosevelt. >> he is president. >> that's right. he had practiced so many times for that moment. we know how he felt. so, matt, tomorrow, what will you be looking for? what's the first thing you want to be -- you want to make sure you're sitting and watching. >> i think the first thing you

watch for when both the president and the first lady come out of church. we sort of get the first glimpse as they do that but in the end what we all want to hear what's going to be in his inaugural address, how will he address a country incredibly divided and went through a rough and tumble campaign cycle and struggles in congress. what is he going to say to congress and the country? many inaugurals have gone down very well. some have not been well. >> abc's jon karl covers the white house and the president for us and, of course, we all are waiting for that inaugural address, but coming up to this inauguration day, the president struck quite a confrontational tone with congress. >> reporter: he sure has. also feels people close to him say quite liberated. remember, george, of course, he never runs for re-election again. he never runs for election again. he has had his last election now running for history and one thing in preparation for this he had dinner here at the white house just last week with a number of presidential historians and i think what you can expect going into this

speech tomorrow is for him to place an historic context and he's spending a lot more time thinking about his place in history. the white house feeling quite good about it. this is as you will hear them say over and over the first democratic president to win twice with more than 50% of the vote since fdr. now the question is what can he do to build on his legacy of his first term, protect it and expand it. >> can the speech done, jon? >> the speech they say is all but dong and tweaks. he's been working on it for some weeks. in a good place. about the -- only thing he'll say specifically about the speech it's going to be a short one, diane. this is not going to have a laundry list of proposals and plans for the second term. it is a 0,000-foot-hyper speck tiff on his president sir and what he hopes to do in reconnecting with the american people. overcoming that partisan divide. the specifics will come later in

a couple weeks from the state of the union address. >> we heard several historians said, be brief. >> of course, one of the shortest presidential inaugurals is the greatest lincoln's second and the president told me four years ago every time he thinks of that second inaugural and has to put pen to paper he's completely paralyzed. >> completely intimidating. 700 words. those beautiful or those beautiful thoughts. a mission statement for the country in a divided time and as we've said here in washington, the excitement is already beginning. those marching bands getting ready for their parade. the caters, 10,000 eggs for one hotel and the whole city has a smile on its face, the pageantry, ceremony, speeches all tomorrow and we will be here with you. we hope you gather your family around with us. abc's david muir will anchor tonight's "world news" from right here. abc will bring you from morning until night every part of that day. >> that's right. we'll start with a special edition of "good morning america." josh elliott will join me here at the newseum and then here's

what happens during the day tomorrow. the first family will go to church in the morning, procession back to the capitol and the president will go to the nation's front porch and once again take the oath. this time on the bibles as we said of martin luther king and abraham lincoln and address the nation and the world after a brief return to the white house a lot of very excited citizens will be in the inaugural parade. >> and we will be bringing it to you, special guests joining us throughout. it will be political royalty, a look at past inaugurations and as well the events of tomorrow and the future. perils and promises of barack obama's second term, all that with inaugural participants including those coming to sing and we've been seeing some of them warming up. although warming up is not the word for the way -- >> kelly clarkson, james taylor and beyonce all singing. she'll close with the national anthem at that ceremony tomorrow. >> we will cover the entire day. we hope you will be with us the